1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the construction of electronic timepieces and in particular the complete structure of an electronic timepiece.
2. Prior Art
In recent years, the modularization of the elements with which electronic watches are constructed has progressed to the extent that the number of structural elements have been substantially reduced. Conventional electronic watches are built with a fixed base plate having the elements of the movement mounted thereon and the base plate together with the elements of the movement fitted into a watchcase. In such a watch, there arises a necessity for parts that make up each element of the movement and as a result the number of individual parts has become unusually large. In addition, with the advent of plastic molding techniques, watchcases have been fabricated by injection molding. Such watchcases have been fabricated with tubules for affixing the movement to the watchcase by screws. However, the assembly of such a watch by screws involves a substantial amount of work and expense. In an effort to produce electronic watches as cheaply as possible, methods utilizing the tubules for affixing the watch movement to the watchcase without screws have been considered.
Since most of the elements that make up an electronic watch movement are substantially rectangular, round cases make an inefficient use of the available space within the watch. In an attempt to overcome this problem in a round watch, rectangular watchcases have been injection molded from plastic. However, rectangular watchcases have had several difficulties in the past. The major difficulty is providing waterproof protection for the electronic watch movement in the rectangular case. In particular, when the watchcase is made of a dry-nature plastic material, it is more easily distorted than metal due to the elasticity and other properties of the plastic. Since the case made out of a dry-nature plastic material easily distorts, the tightness of the seal is unsatisfactory and waterproofing is not completely effected.
Also, in order to make the electronic watch as small as possible, the battery is separated from the watch proper and is moved outside of the watchcase. Moving the battery outside the watchcase raises new problems of its own and aggravates some of the old ones. In particular, a means must be provided for connecting the battery to the movement of the electronic timepiece. Said means must pass through both the container for the battery and the watchcase itself without effecting the watertightness of either.